A is the most-faked document in the world. The good news: there are five things every real COA has, and the fakes are usually missing one or more.
The 5 fields a real has
1. Batch / lot number that matches the vial label
Verbatim. If the says batch `BPC2024-0331` and the vial says `BPC2024-0331`, that's the bare minimum. If they don't match, the COA was issued for someone else's batch and recycled onto yours.
2. Identity confirmation via mass spectrometry
The reported molecular mass should match the expected molecular weight of the ±0.5 Da. BPC-157 = 1419.55 Da. Tirzepatide = 4813.4 Da. If the reports a mass that doesn't match the expected MW, the molecule is wrong. Period. Mass spec is the hardest line to fake because the molecular weight is a physical property the lab can't fudge without leaving an obvious tell.
3. HPLC purity ≥98%, with method documented
"≥98% by , isocratic acetonitrile/water + 0.1% TFA, C18 column, 220nm UV detection" is what a real method line looks like. "99.9% pure" with no method is a marketing number, not a measurement. Real labs document the column, mobile phase, gradient, and detection method.
4. The testing lab name, address, and signature/date
A signed lab director with a credential. A physical address you can verify. An issuance date within 12 months of the batch manufacture (peptides can degrade — a 3-year-old tells you nothing about the current vial).
5. Endotoxin level for injectable products
Below 0.5 EU/mg is the FDA threshold for injectables. If a for an injectable doesn't report , that's a meaningful gap. (Topicals and oral peptides can skip this.)
Six red flags in fake COAs
1. Round-number purity
"99.9999%" — nobody measures purity to four decimal places. Real reports two-decimal purity (99.34%, 98.87%).
2. The lab is part of the vendor's parent company
"Premium Bio Verify Labs" tested by "Premium Bio Verify Vendor" — that's first-party testing, not third-party. Search the lab name; if it has no separate web presence, it's a sock.
3. Identity by IR or UV spectroscopy alone
IR/UV can confirm a -like molecule but can't distinguish between similar peptides. A without mass spec confirmation tells you it's a peptide of roughly the right size, not that it's the peptide you ordered.
4. Reused chromatograms across multiple batches
Compare COAs from the same vendor across batches. If the chromatogram shape (peaks, baseline noise, retention times) is identical, they're using the same scan and just changing the batch number on top.
5. Methodology section that's pasted from a textbook
Real lab reports use the lab's own method language. Copy-pasted Wikipedia descriptions of are a tell that nobody actually ran the test.
6. PDF metadata reveals the vendor as the author
Open the PDF, check Document Properties. If the author field is "VendorName" rather than the testing lab, the vendor created the PDF — meaning at minimum they handled it after the lab issued it, and at maximum they fabricated it entirely.
What to do when the looks fake
1. Email the vendor. Ask for the lab's direct contact info to verify the result. A real vendor will provide it. A fake one will stall.
2. Email the testing lab directly with the batch number. Real labs verify their own results.
3. If verification fails or stalls — don't order. The vendor knows what they're doing.
4. If you've already ordered: post the in r/Peptides or your relevant Discord. The community has a long memory and good pattern recognition.
The bigger picture
A is the vendor saying "a lab we picked tested a sample we sent." Even an honest COA only proves what was in the sample sent to the lab — not what's in your specific vial. The lab-of-truth is the one you send a sample to (how to run an ID test).
A legit is necessary but not sufficient. A missing or fake COA is sufficient by itself to walk away.